Autism Speaks Applauds Supreme Court Decision Upholding Families' Right to Challenge IEPs Without First Trying Out School District Proposed Placement

... WASHINGTON Oct. 10 /- By a vote of 4-4 the Supreme ... Today the court affirmed the danger of making students try out anina...Autism Speaks filed an amicus brief in the case focusing on thecriti...

WASHINGTON, Oct. 10 /PRNewswire/ -- By a vote of 4-4, the Supreme Court
today upheld the Second Circuit Court decision in the case of Board of
Education of City of New York v. Tom F., 06-637, thereby affirming parents'
statutory right to challenge a school district's Individualized Education
Plan (IEP) without first "trying out" the school district's proposed
placement. The New York City Department of Education had argued that even
if the child's IEP is demonstrably inappropriate, a parent should not have
standing to challenge their child's IEP unless the parent has first "tried
out" the school district's IEP.

"Today the court affirmed the danger of making students try out an
inappropriate school district program. Students who need early intervention
do not have time to waste," said Gary Mayerson, an Autism Speaks board
member and founder of law firm Mayerson & Associates. "School districts
need to fulfill their statutory responsibility to create an appropriate IEP
for every child with a disability or to pay for that student to attend an
appropriate private school."

Autism Speaks filed an amicus brief in the case, focusing on the
critical nature of early intervention for children with autism. The brief
explained why parents of children with autism should not be forced to "try
out" demonstrably inappropriate and ineffective IEP programs during what
may well be a relatively narrow window of opportunity. Justice Ruth Bader
Ginsburg quoted from the brief during oral argument. The brief was prepared
as part of The Autism Speaks Federal Legal Appeals Project (FLAP), a
national pro bono initiative assembled and directed by Mayerson for Autism
Speaks. To date, approximately ten national profile law firms, including
Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld, have joined the FLAP committee with
commitments to provide significant pro bono legal services at the federal
level. Akin Gump attorneys Robert H. Pees, Michael D. Lockard, Amanda R.
Johnson, Sunish Gulati and Evandro C. Gigante prepared the amicus brief in
the Tom F. case.

"We are relieved that the court's judgment was not clouded by the fact
that Tom F. himself was a parent with significant financial means who
easily could afford to pay for private school. This ruling has potential to
affect all families in the nation," said Bob Wright, co-founder of Autism
Speaks. "Unfortunately school districts do not always act in good faith
when designing a child's IEP. Today they have been told that they must."

In the case of a tie, the ruling under consideration is affirmed,
although it does not set national precedent. In this case, the New York
City Board of Education was appealing a ruling by the Second Circuit, which
had ruled in favor of Tom F. During oral arguments on October 1, Leonard
Koerner, chief appeals lawyer for New York City, said parents should be
required to give the public system a shot, even if only a brief one, before
they can appeal for an outside placement.

ABOUT AUTISM

Autism is a complex brain disorder that inhibits a person's ability to
communicate and develop social relationships, and is often accompanied by
extreme behavioral challenges. Autism spectrum disorders are diagnosed in
one in 150 children in the United States, affecting four times as many boys
as girls. The diagnosis of autism has increased tenfold in the last decade.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention have called autism a
national public health crisis whose cause and cure remain unknown.

ABOUT AUTISM SPEAKS

Autism Speaks is dedicated to increasing awareness of autism spectrum
disorders, to funding research into the causes, prevention, treatments and
cure for autism, and to advocating for the needs of affected families. It
was founded in February 2005 by Suzanne and Bob Wright, the grandparents of
a child with autism. Bob Wright is Vice Chairman, General Electric, and
served as chief executive officer of NBC for more than twenty years. Autism
Speaks has merged with both the National Alliance for Autism Research
(NAAR) and Cure Autism Now (CAN), bringing together the nation's three
leading autism advocacy organizations. To learn more about Autism Speaks,
please visit http://www.autismspeaks.org.

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